Government is looking into complaints that the cost of generic drugs have increased in the wake of legislation aimed at reducing healthcare costs.

The Pharmacy and Poisons Amendment Bill 2013, approved in the House of Assembly last year, requires pharmacists to offer “chemical and therapeutic equivalents” for prescription drugs, making less expensive generic drugs more available to the public.

But one Bermuda doctor, who asked not to be identified, said that since the act passed the price of generic drugs appears to have risen.

“The markup on prescriptions is extortionate,” the doctor said. “They contribute a significant proportion of the cost of healthcare

“There was a new law that started at the beginning of February stating that if a generic version of the drug was available, this was to be dispensed instead of the branded version. I think this has led to increased costs of generics.”

Another doctor said: “My understanding was that the entire idea behind the new legislation was to help lower the costs for patients.

“If the costs for generics goes up, it means the retailers or the importers may be seeing the benefits more than the patients.”

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health said yesterday: “We were recently made aware of concerns regarding the pricing of generic prescription drugs, and the matter is being investigated by the Ministry.

“A course of action will be identified once all the facts are gathered.”